Pages

Friday, October 29, 2010

A short little rant today about an opinion piece that found its way into the mainstream media via the Washington Post. It seems that Catholic Bloggers want to purge the Church of any kind of dissent!! The shock! The horror! Can you believe it,.that 'We' the Catholic Bloggers are actually trying as best we can to live out our faith, be faithful to the Magisterium and thus don't subcribe to any heterodox super plan to attempt to change the Church into Episcopal Church 2, the Sequel. Y'know the one that doesn't pronounce any dogmas, because well, that would be judgmental, now wouldn't it?

So let's get straight to the point, cut through all the crap past the meat and into the marrow of the problem,. What is wrong with Catholics wanting to be Catholic? Are they friggin serious? 'Conservative' Catholic or 'liberal' catholik,..cause y'know that actually wouldn't be Catholic. How about 'flying' Catholic or maybe 'three headed' Catholic? Since we are delving into the absurd,..Sometimes the amount of nonsense put forth by the secular media knows no limits. So we, the bloggers are given titles such as 'Taliban' or 'Traditionalist' all because we refuse to accept the last forty years of feminized clergy preaching the Mr. Roger's, tree hugging, environmentalist, whale saving, tai chi practicing pseudo Jesus, who was a liberation theologian pushing for class struggle,..all from a lenten retreat given by Sister Rain Moondance inspired by the latest published book by Joan Chittister,.(which could double as toilet paper)! You know why the liberal elites are upset? Because the John Paul II generation understands the media and social networking. We are hip to Twitter, Facebook, Digg and MySpace and we are relentless! The dinosaurs(cause that is what you are now,..going into extinction..)are just too old to know how to use a computer! So what do they do, they attack in other ways,(maybe the New Yorker will come after us next)...They don't like the younger generation not being rebellious enough, actually reading the sources and drawing our own conclusions that 'Hey the Church makes sense on this or that issue' and 'actually Vatican II says this!'

So there you go,..Catholic Bloggers, we are the few, the proud, we will stand up for something, or else we will fall for anything. By the way, the quote by John Allen, (who is usually the most balanced voice on National Crapolic Reporter...)Yes you, Mr Allen, stop being such a pansy and come out either in favor or against. Believe me, I haven't made many friends operating this blog, but at 32, I believe the Church and am faithful to the Magisterium to the best of my ability. Am I a sinner? To quote Stone Cold Steve Austin,..'Oh Hell Yeah!!' But y'know what? Jesus died for me, and I'm gonna do my best to co-operate with Grace. (By the way, the Blessed Mother has a lot to do with my conversion) So, in closing, Mr Allen, the Apostles all went to their death for Jesus through martyrdom, (except John)we as Catholic Christians in the coming generation must be ready to do the same. Can you imagine them before the Romans saying 'it doesn't matter what you believe, or do,.because you feel,..blah, blah, blah,...' The wishy washy stuff has set us on a course which is irreversable,..two generations from now, will see our children living in the Islamic States of America and Canadastan. Why? Because, people(like you) were too timid or afraid. Mr Allen, I won't even give you credit for saying that 'to be fair, liberals act like that too.' As an educated man, you should know that despite current trends and vocabulary manipulation,..there is no such thing as 'liberal Catholicism!!!!'(Repeat it like a mantra...) The next time you get interviewed by the secular media, look down and feel between your legs,.make sure you have a set, then answer the question! Was that a little harsh? Was I being uncharitable? Be a man! By the way if you feel that way, know that around the corner from me there is a Muslim family with 5 children,.they live next door to a homosexual couple.

Friday, October 22, 2010

Living in 'la belle province' can have its advantages and disadvantages especially with regards to what side of the political coin you fall on. You see, Canadians as a whole, well we are not exactly known for our patriotism unless of course its a sporting event. No, we tend to be very timid and will often express ourselves by our parents cultural heritage and leanings. For instance, I might identify myself as half Italian, half Irish/Scottish with some french Canadien blood. This of course can cause at times a lack of patriotic unity especially in Canada, where the Quebecois have more or less a monopoly on patriotism. To be fair, there is nothing wrong with being patriotic, and at times we can use some of our American friends' zeal,.(I often think of Hulk Hogan's entrance music,..'I am a Real American')in order to foster better Canadian unity!

But alas,I'm what you consider an 'allophone' living in the most xenophobic part of North America! Sometimes our language laws can compare with pre confederate union US states! You think I'm kidding? Well,.it is illegal for me to publish material in English even if my entire company was majority english,..Ici,.C'est en francais!
So this brings me to this week's rant,..err sorry blog post. Gilles Duceppe, the leader of the Bloc Quebecois, travelled to Washington in order to meet with 'high level' members of the government and various think tanks. Well,.of course, Mr Duceppe, the separatist, barely made a dent in the politcal fabric if he was even mentioned at all. What I find most interesting is the fact that none of the local media went with him and instead relied on BQ and PQ (Parti Quebecois) spin doctors and campaign managers to declare what a success the trip was! The media outlets here, namely the Peladeau inspired 'nationalist' (that's code for separatist) newspapers were too eager to print their versions of revisionist politics. Smashing success! Duceppe meets with high level diplomats were some of the articles. The reality however is much different,..It barely made the ticker on CNN, (As a matter of fact, I wonder aloud if it actually did!)

Once a month, I take one post and laugh at the separatists, because, well, I can. The economic downturn experienced in this province during the 1980s is well documented. The sad reality, at the provincial level, is that there is no real alternative to the governing liberal party of Quebec. Jean Charest as corrupt as he is, will still have the vote of all anglophones, majority allophones, and at least one third of the francophones. In an interesting development, Marois's numbers plunged when two former PQ ministers threw out the idea of creating a nationalist party and shelving separation, and according to polls they would come in!!!!!

Remember, Je me souviens,..the international community laughs at you. You are not comparable to the Palestinian cause,.The USA doesn't care,..Y'know,.like or not, at least I'm telling you the truth!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Well,..this is my second post today and it will be one devoid of any comedy or sarcasm. Tomorrow, in Vatican City, Pope Benedict XVI will canonize Brother Andre and officially declare him a Saint. Born August 9th 1845, Alfred Bessett became the Holy Cross brother known as Brother Andre. Anyone from anywhere in the world who has taken a trip to St Joseph's Oratory in Montreal knows of his miraculous healings. One such healing occured in 1935, in the St Henri district of Montreal. Well at least the recipient of that miraculous healing was from that district. At the time, he was a newborn striken with an ear infection, and at that time medicine being what it was,..was well essentially limited if not primitive. Through the intercession of St Joseph,.the ear infection was cured.

A quick visit to the Oratory leaves any visitor marked with a sense of the sacred. Entering usually through the crypt,.praying at Brother Andre's tomb,.gazing at the multitude of crutches lining the structure reminds people of their Faith in God,.their Catholic roots and the solidarity of being strong in the face of adversity,..the Oratory well its just too awesome to condense into a few words. In the coming weeks, I'll delve into the Oratory of Montreal or Mont Royal and thus straight into the heart of the Canadian Catholic infrastructure....Ohhhh,..By the way, the cure I made reference to, the newborn,.he is my uncle Joe, a living witness to the power of the Faith of brother Andre.

Several weeks back an interesting thing transpired at the gym while I was working out,..my friend posed me some questions regarding the Faith and how to better integrate himself into it. You see, he is a young father, and to put it bluntly a man's man. That being, and we've all been there, sometimes going to Mass is akin to assisting at a children's television show. The trancendance and beauty of the Liturgy which still can be found in many parishes, don't get me wrong,..has by and large been replaced these last forty years with feminized clergy,.(yes even the priests) campy songs ripe from the silly sixties or kumbaya crap people liturgies(if you can call them that) from the seventies. While I was doing bicep curls, my buddy posed these questions,..now I'm not going to insult my readership by claiming there just happened to be a camera present,..but there was one on hand so we 're-did' the scene. The message that we are trying to convey is simple. We are men, we want truth, please don't force us to do things contrary to not only the Natural Law, but our characters as well.

Obviously, this is a two minute type snippet,..yet I think the message reasonates. The next time we as men are forced to look at felt butteflies in a Church Sanctuary while we tune up the piano and sing 'We got the joy, joy,.joy,.joy,. down in my heart,' ask yourself, if this is the Liturgy Jesus envisioned as pen ultimate worship. Then follow-up and ask yourself why a vocation crisis,.why a homosexual abuse crisis,..I think you've found the answers. ****Special thanks to John Babb and camera work by Anthony Gualtieri. Finally,..Yes. I definetely need a tan. ;)

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Once again, its Wednesday and now its time for an introspective look into my soul, my spirit, my will and finally state of mind. Yes, it took a lot of unecessary words to express the same thing, but you love me anyway for it. As many of you know, I experienced a nervous breakdown several months back, and the road back to sanity has been lined with many roses, yet at the same time I've felt I've stepped on one too many thorns. First off, a Thank-you to all my well wishers who have emailed me asking how I'm doing. I plan on answering all of you personally, but it will take some time. Being Catholic is hard enough, being a man is hard,..but being a Catholic man in the twenty first century is almost akin to ingesting nails dipped in hydrochloric acid!

Take note, that this is the type of stuff that I speak about in Spiritual direction but also I feel the need to share with all of you,..Why? Well,.because most people ask, 'Hey Optimus,..What's wrong?' My answer will confuse them. (unless your a Transformers fan,...hehehe) I'll simply say that there are days when I feel like Rodimus instead of Optimus! (More on that later,..) I've mentioned before that I almost feel that there are two sides to me, 'pre' and 'post' conversion! Sometimes I just get so frustrated at not being able to secularly deal with issues the same way everyone else does,..so the 'why me' syndrome kicks in!

Similarities definetly abound. Our Faith in Christ is a relationship, kinda like the matrix, and like every relationship, there are its 'ups' and 'downs.' This scene happened when Deadend and Wildrider forced then Rodimus off a cliff as he was attempting to save Marissa Fairborne. I kind of feel the same way, not to go into detail, but every action, every reaction becomes a test of Faith. (I am reminded of then Cardinal Ratzinger's homily for JPII at his funeral,..about the Christian road that will hurt your feet.) Anyway, sometimes you just need to get away, and that's exactly what I do,..if not physically,.then mentally!

As human beings we are created free, free to choose what is 'good' from what is 'bad.' That being said, the 'good' is in most cases not the easiest choice, (the same way brocoli is not as tasty an option as Doritos!) Intellectually we grasp this, emotively welllllll,...not right away...

Sometimes however there comes along people in our life journey who at the right time, enable us to rethink our position and declare, 'wow' it ain't that bad! An example of this was last friday. I had the priveledge of having dinner with an individual whose own story is marked, if not downright tatooed by a series of events preventing said person from succeeding! This person's passion and dedication towards singing knows no limit and the enthusiasm and passion brought forth can be downright infectious! This person, has a story which should be published, and at the end, this person asked how I was doing with my own issues!! I couldn't believe it!! My issues, on the grand scale of things paled in comparison to this person's life story(the same way a pimple pales to cancer), and yet, I was feeling sorry for myself! Needless to say this individual taught me an invaluable lesson! At the onset of the evening, this person was asking me advice,.yet at the end, I stood in awe of a person so passionate so driven,..I felt humbled.

So what's the whole point of the Transformers in this? Well, these clips come from season 3's 'Burden Hardest to Bear.' In this episode, Rodimus can't deal with the responsibility of being the autobot leader. It in many ways, it mirrors our relationship to Christ. Sometimes we get caught up in the whole 'sappy,' 'syrupy' Christianity thing, while forgetting there is a responsibility! Would it easier to remain secular,..after all isn't ignorance bliss? Absolutely! By the way, I almost witnessed a mentally handicapped person attempt to cross a busy intersection while wearing a smile....I think you get my point. As Hot Rod/Rodimus said about the matrix, we can say about God,..'I belong to Him!'

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Okay a little weekend post here, something that I don't normally do. The last time I posted, it was an aggressive call to action! Now I appeal to your intellect. On fire Protestants need to watch this,.and luke warm Catholics can use it to bolster their Faith!

Now I'm a very ecumenical guy, but sometimes a video gets my attention so much that I have to post it! My beloved protestants/evangelicals/pentecostals/calvinists,..I'm not writing aggressively, all I'm asking is that you seriously consider the above video. One Church! The same Church that the Holy Spirit used to canonize the Bible! The same Church that gave you a moral code in accord with Natural Law! The same Church that has never changed Her doctrine, even when it becomes unpopular (Abortion/contraception). The only Church attacked inside and out,.but is STILL STANDING!!! Friends, ponder these things, pray and discern,..Western Civilization is under attack and only the Catholic Church has the antidote. It's time to come home!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Once again kids I'm back and this time with a spiritual bazooka! A few posts ago, I mentioned that I went toe to toe with two faith-filled evangelical Christians regarding their (not God's) interpretation of Sacred Scripture and thus their drive by Christianity. Lo and behold I (again) got an email(anonymous) regarding the apparent tensions I caused in a particular marriage. It seems that I rocked the husbands world,.(meaning I mounted a reasonable defense of the Faith to cause angst)and thus he has been devouring works by Catholic scholars and finding that it makes sense. Can you imagine that!!! This women who asked me to be open minded, because she was charged with the task of getting me 'born again' is now angry because her husband is now open minded!!!Then came the Jehovah Witnesses...Yup, it seems everyone is entitled to their opinion, with of course the exception of an orthodox, metaphysically sound, rational belief in the Catholic Church!! That becomes akin to 'hate speech.'

Saturday night, I was speaking with my old pastor,.a gentle man, but one who is ultimately trapped in the nineteen sixties. For him everything is up for grabs, dogmatically,..there is no such thing as truth, only the human experience. Obviously for years, we were inundated with homilies saturated with marxist leftist calls for social justice(except abortion, or the gay agenda,..) and our liturgies reflected a laboratory experiment gone terribly wrong. The conversation although cordial was very laborious,..as he seemed quite angry.(Most liberals are...) We parted on good terms, and I said to him, that is authentic dialogue, where we are seeking Truth! Not just a warm and fuzzy appreciation of everybody's opinion. He nodded but seemed depressed by the very fact that my generation (by and large) of practicing Catholics are just that, practicing Catholics! Not dissidents!

The juxtaposition of these two events reminded me of why I started 'Confessions.' At first, I would talk about mostly issues regarding non-sensical stuff, (wrestling! hehehe..btw, I have a blog for that!) but more and more, 'Confessions' became the outlet for a thirty two year old man trying to reconcile his Faith with the world we live in,..sound familiar? It's VATICAN II!!! I felt angry in the morning, with people ignorant to the Faith, but troubled if not down right sad by the priest who lost his Faith. Vatican II is not about dissenting from the Truth, its about learning to present it in modern times! The attacks from the outside, indeed are troubling, but when they come from within, it can feel like a stab through the heart. All in all, I am beginning to once again feel tugged. I don't know what God has in store for me, because everyday is an adventure,..To conclude, I feel like I'm the living embodiment of that famous U2 song,..'I still haven't found what I'm lookin for...' Am I called to apologetics, inside as well as outside the Church? I honestly don't know.

Call to action time!! (No, not the group of aging hippies polluting the Faith of our neighbors to the south) Orthodox Catholics, we need to stand up and fight! Fight for our Church inside and out! Fight the culture of death on social issues, from the top down! (that means we start with Abortion.!!! No 'seamless garment' crap here!) We need to step up and vote candidates who do not suffer from spiritual schizophrenia,..('Uhh, I'm uh personally uhh against,..but uhhh I believe in the freedom of choice,..') You say you're Catholic? Fine, then start acting like it! Men,..we need to grow a set of balls! If your teaching catechism and presenting the tree hugging 'Mr. Rogers' environmental Jesus,..Get the f%&$ out!! How about 'Braveheart' as a Jesus model,..or better still how about JESUS (y'know, the Son of God?, The Second Person of the Holy Trinity?, Empty Tomb?,..That guy..??) as a 'Jesus' model. No longer will we tolerate 'liturgists'(that includes you 'spirit of Vatican II priests!!!) making stuff up as they go along, holding hands, having women 'religious' deliver homilies based on gaia, the earth goddess!
If you see a young priest or seminarian, encourage him! Pray for him, ask him if he wears a cassock, and tell him you'll write the Bishop of the diocese, we need good holy men to make it, not get sent to a psychologist cause they're 'rigid'or whatever,..they're actually CATHOLIC!

So there you go freako liberals, eat the pill! Heterodoxy is dead!! You want proof? Check out the Episcopalian Communion, if that doesn't convince you,..you should consider a lobotomy, you need one!